The Golden Ark hovered silently above the disguised merchant ship.
Every crew member aboard was actually part of the New World Dispatch Company, dressed up as an ordinary escort team. Even Bra Kara was hidden among these so-called guards.
At that moment, a man dressed like a ship captain shuffled forward, trembling with fear as he faced the overwhelming presence of the Hell Pirates.
"Honorable sirs up there, we're just a humble merchant ship! Take whatever you want, but please, spare our lives! We're just ordinary folk, with families to feed back home!"
The merchant captain bowed so low he almost kissed the deck, groveling in utter submission. His pitiful plea could stir even a stone heart.
"Bra Kara… come out. I know you're among them."
With a single glance, Brook's Life Detection had already locked onto the unusual energy signature in the escort team. It stood out like a flare in his eyes.
Still, not a soul on the ship dared move. Everyone shook like leaves in the wind, stubbornly pretending innocence.
"No need to waste your breath, Brook!"
Redfield casually unleashed an electric net, zapping the entire group of grunts until they collapsed in a heap.
The crew around Bra Kara fell at once, and he toppled with them — putting on quite the convincing act, as if he too had been caught off guard.
But before Redfield could even go down to inspect, Brook fired off a burst of his Death Aura, freezing Bra Kara solid on the spot.
"As expected of you, Brook! Saw through him right away!"
Even the usually aloof Redfield couldn't help but toss Brook a rare compliment, surprising Shakky and the others.
The Golden Lion Shiki swooped down, grabbed the frozen Bra Kara, and hauled him back up. The entire disguised merchant ship floated alongside, now tethered behind the Golden Ark as they made for Baron Island.
Though Bra Kara soon shattered Brook's icy bind and broke free, he quickly realized he was already aboard the enemy's ship. He lowered his head and fell silent — seemingly resigned to his fate.
"Oi, you're not even gonna fight back? Then again, you're not really a pirate, are you? Just a company man."
Shiki barely spared him a glance. His real focus was waiting for the Roger Pirates to arrive — he needed to crush that so-called Chosen One to satisfy his own pride. Nothing else would taste right until then.
The rest of the crew also felt this operation had gone almost too smoothly, leaving them with little excitement.
"Bra Kara… how about it? Care to join us? You won't have to keep running cargo for others if you side with us!"
After all, being a wage slave, doing endless deliveries, couldn't compare to hauling gold and Seastone under Brook's command.
"No need to bother trying. Maxway-san is both my boss and the man who saved my life. I won't betray him!"
Bra Kara put on a brave front, though Brook could hear the subtle tremble in his voice — he wasn't as calm as he tried to appear.
Brook didn't push further. Instead, he signaled Redfield to read the man's thoughts, searching for anything useful — especially Maxway's whereabouts.
Once they tracked down Maxway, they could try persuading Bra Kara again. And if that failed, well… it'd be time to call in the Memory Seahorse. Meanwhile, Antonio was already studying Bra Kara's voice and mannerisms, getting ready to impersonate him.
This conman genius was back in business, preparing to use Bra Kara's identity to call Maxway via Den Den Mushi and lure him into a trap.
Time was tight — if their client nation didn't receive its shipment soon, they'd come knocking on Maxway's door. And once Bra Kara's disappearance got out, everything would blow wide open.
Soon enough, Redfield handed Antonio Maxway's contact code.
Antonio retreated into his prism-lined monitoring chamber to avoid any stray voices giving away their ploy. He dialed in, speaking into the Den Den Mushi.
"Maxway-san… we got hit by pirates at Blue Pillar Island! There are some real heavy hitters among them—hurry, we need backup!"
Antonio kept it short, knowing that saying too much risked slipping up. He faked the line being cut off mid-battle, hoping that if Maxway truly valued Bra Kara, he'd rush to the rescue.
Outside, the Memory Seahorse and Charlotte Linlin were already eyeing Bra Kara like hungry wolves, drooling at the thought of feasting on his memories. But Brook had forbidden them from harming this Pocket Fruit user just yet.
Blue Pillar Island — a small, ordinary stop along the route back to Baron Island — made the perfect fishing spot to try and hook Maxway into revealing himself.
After all, the bosses of the Underworld rarely showed their faces. If they wanted to catch him, they had to drag him out into the open.
Maxway, though, was still a relative newcomer in the Underworld, having risen to prominence only in the past decade. He didn't yet have the deep-rooted cunning of the old established families.
When news of Bra Kara's capture reached him, he hesitated for just a moment before setting out. Gathering his men, he boarded a disguised vessel and sailed straight for Blue Pillar Island.
In recent years, with two pirate overlords waging war, many who wanted no part in the chaos had either fled the New World or hidden themselves. Some had even joined the Underworld, turning to business instead of piracy.
Thanks to this, the New World Dispatch Company had managed to recruit some pretty capable pirates, expanding its influence until it became one of the top three powerhouses in underground transport.
But lacking deep roots and manpower, Maxway had abandoned any ambitions in the Grand Line and the Four Blues, choosing instead to focus entirely on dominating trade within the New World. That decision had made his operations more efficient and profitable.
He'd successfully shed his pirate label and rebranded himself as a neutral force — dealing with pirate crews and nations alike, doing business with anyone who could pay.
At the very beginning, it was Bra Kara's Pocket Fruit that had allowed Maxway to enter this trade. Even now, after growing his empire, he still placed high value on Bra Kara.
Whenever it came to sensitive or high-stakes shipments, Maxway personally deployed Bra Kara. For regular cargo, his company's expanding transport network handled things smoothly enough.
Of course, Maxway wasn't naive — he knew this could very well be a trap. That's why he came aboard a disguised vessel, ready to bail if things went south.
But even so, the old pirate blood in him wouldn't let him abandon a comrade. Bra Kara had been with him from the start — he couldn't just leave him to die.
Besides, with the major powers all busy preparing for war, who'd bother setting a trap just for him? The Rocks Pirates and Vesper Pirates were still his business partners, so he ruled them out.
That left only the Supernovas — upstarts he figured he could handle. After all, Maxway had survived in the New World for over twenty years. His bounty might've been stagnant for a decade, but his true strength…
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+188 chapters on p@treon/tambeerg